Tilt Beauty Backs Arthritis Foundation's New Ease of Use Lab in Atlanta

Tilt Beauty has put its name on the Arthritis Foundation's new Tilt Ease of Use Lab, expected to open in Atlanta by the end of the year. The lab will house testing for the Foundation's 21-year-old Ease of Use certification program, moving the evaluation process in-house for the first time.

"For millions of people with arthritis, everyday tasks, from opening a jar to using personal care products, can be a challenge," said Steven Taylor, president and CEO of the Arthritis Foundation. "By bringing the Ease of Use testing lab in-house, we can more efficiently provide lab and human factors evaluation for products and packaging. This lab ensures that arthritis patients continue to have a voice in how products are designed, creating a world where accessibility is the standard, not the exception."

Taylor's claim of greater efficiency rests on a structural change, not a new standard. The Foundation has certified products for two decades. What changes is where the testing happens and how quickly it can be turned around.

Who is Tilt Beauty?

Founder Aerin Glazer grew up with psoriatic arthritis, and she built the brand around that experience. Tilt debuted in 2025 as the first brand to earn the Arthritis Foundation's Ease of Use Certification across its entire makeup collection.

The launch lineup consisted of two products:

• Lashscape Volumizing Mascara, $28
• Grip Stick Hydrating Lip Treatment, $26

The range has since expanded with The Easy Way Effortless Lip Liner, $26, and The Easy Way Hydrating Satin Lipstick, $28. The Arthritis Foundation has certified both additions.

What does the packaging actually do?

Every Tilt product is refillable and ships in ergonomic packaging. The mascara carries a comfortable handle that the brand says gives users extra control. The lip liner replaces the usual slim pencil with a wider, cushioned grip. The lipstick sits in a grippy case designed to make application and refilling easier.

These are design claims, not clinical ones. The brand has not published independent usability data beyond the Foundation's certification, and the certification itself covers ease of opening, holding and applying rather than product performance.

How big is the demand?

The Arthritis Foundation's 2024 Ease of Use Study quantifies the gap. Per the report, 90 percent of consumers say they need help opening packaging. Nearly 70 percent of people with arthritis struggle with products that require twisting or gripping.

Those figures cover packaging broadly, not cosmetics specifically. They do, however, frame the commercial case for a lab dedicated to how products are opened, held and applied — an area where dedicated testing has lagged behind the demand the study documents.

What comes next?

The lab's opening by year's end gives the Foundation a permanent testing home and gives Tilt a naming-rights platform in accessibility. If the in-house model shortens certification timelines as Taylor predicts, more brands may find certification cheaper to pursue. The Atlanta opening will show whether accessibility moves from exception to standard.